The Certified Management Accountant (CMA®) exam is offered in three two-month testing periods each year: January–February, May–June, and September–October. The deadline to register for a given CMA exam window is on the 15th of the last month in that window. You can then schedule your CMA exam date for any time within that window.

Between selecting a CMA testing window, choosing which exam part to take first, and scheduling your testing appointment, locking in your CMA exam date can be stressful.

Let us walk you through the process of choosing a testing window, registering for your chosen window, and booking your CMA exam testing appointment.

First, here’s a look at the three testing windows for the CMA exam and their registration deadlines.

Some candidates prefer to schedule their CMA exam date immediately, while others prefer to study for the exam and schedule once they feel ready to test. We’ve broken down the pros and cons of each below to help you decide which approach is best for you. 

You can take the two parts of the CMA exam in any order, but we typically recommend candidates take Part 1 first. Part 1 can provide you with the foundational knowledge required to study for Part 2. This will help you maximize your study time and learn all of the exam content efficiently.

You should review the topics tested on each part of the CMA exam and determine which part you’re more familiar with, because there are two exceptions in which it may be beneficial to take Part 2 first.

Anyone can pass the CMA exam with adequate preparation, so taking the part that requires the least study time or the one that you’ll find it easiest to set aside time for will make your first time testing much easier. After you pass one part, you’ll have the confidence you need to keep going. 

The Institute of Certified Management Accountants (ICMA®) releases Content Specification Outlines that cover what’s tested on the CMA exam and can help you decide which part best corresponds to your experience or which interests you the most.

Setting your CMA exam date is a multi-step process. First, you have to be an IMA member, enroll in the CMA program, and pay for your exam. After you’ve registered, you can schedule an appointment for a specific day with the testing provider, Prometric.

You’ll need to follow these steps, which we break down in detail below. 

1. Join the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA®)
2. Enroll in the CMA program
3. Pay the CMA exam fees
4. Schedule your CMA testing appointment

The Institute of Management Accountants Opens in new window, is the organization that administers the CMA certification. It’s required for you to be an IMA member in order to take the exam and earn your certification. IMA membership also comes with perks like discounted and free continuing education options, networking opportunities, and access to a worldwide community of management accountants.

When you join, you’ll choose a membership type between: Professional, Student, Academic, or Corporate. Each membership type has its own fees and benefits. Learn more on our CMA exam costs page. 

Once you’re an active IMA member, you’ll need to enroll in the CMA program by paying the CMA entrance fee, which varies depending on your membership status. Once you’ve paid the program entrance fee, you’ll officially be a registered CMA candidate, which means you’ll be able to move on to the next step of paying for the CMA exams. 

You’ll pay for both parts of the CMA exam individually, but you can take them in whatever order you prefer. You’ll have six months from the date your payment is complete to sit for your exam. Once your payment is complete, you’ll receive an email from IMA with your exam authorization code and details about your eligibility window.  

Before you can schedule your appointment, you’ll need to determine which testing window to take your exam in. You can test in the January–February, May–June, or September–October windows. 

Once you’ve decided when you want to test, you’ll schedule your appointment on Prometric’s website Opens in new window, where you’ll choose your testing center location and your appointment date and time. 

Life happens, and you may not be able to take your exam on the date you originally scheduled it for. The good news is you have options if you need to cancel or reschedule your CMA exam date. 

See the following table for Prometric’s detailed rescheduling and cancellation policy.

You shouldn’t pick an exam date at random and hope it will work. It’s important to make sure you plan ahead to give yourself enough time to study. You also don’t want to set your CMA exam date so far ahead in the future that you’re not motivated to put in at least 12 hours per week. (That’s the minimum we recommend for most candidates so you don’t forget what you learned at the beginning before you make it to the end).

A CMA study strategy is essential no matter what stage of the process you’re in. To help you create your CMA study plan, start by asking yourself these questions:

Your study strategy should be tailored to meet your needs so that you can pass each part on your first try. Two of the most common approaches are creating a study plan based on your exam date or based on how many study hours you have available per week. We’ve broken down the steps for each approach below.

Once you’ve selected a CMA exam date, you’ll be able to create a study plan by working backwards from your deadline. Follow the steps below to create a study plan if you already have an exam date picked out.

Rather than deciding how many hours per week you need to study based on your CMA exam date, some people may prefer to decide their exam date based on the amount of time they’re able to study per week.

If you choose this approach, you’ll want to select an exam date and schedule it as a part of this process. This will give you a deadline to work toward and help cement your exam prep as a priority. 

You can also skip creating your own study plan and find a course that comes with an adaptive study planner, like ours! To use our study planner, all you’ll need to do is follow these steps.

1. Choose your start date and when you’d like to pass by.
2. Tell us how many hours you can study each day of the week.
3. Mark off days on the calendar you won’t be able to study.

Based on your answers, our course will create a custom study plan just for you and guide you step-by-step through the course so that you’re ready to pass by your selected CMA exam date.

It’ll automatically adjust as you work through the course, even if you miss a couple of days, work ahead, or decide you’d rather study a different topic for a while. Your performance on each topic is tracked separately, and it’s all viewable through the dashboard.

We’ll let you know when you’re ready to earn your passing score!

Once you have a study plan, it’s important to stick to it so that you’ll be prepared by your scheduled CMA exam date. The last thing you want to have to do is reschedule your exam. 

So how should you prepare for test day? The most important thing is to complete your course, so most of your time should be spent studying wherever and however you study best. Then you want to make sure you’re as comfortable as possible in the testing center, so when you take practice exams, you’re practicing in the most realistic conditions possible. But to prepare for those things you can’t prepare for, spend some time studying outside of your comfort zone. Use a different chair, change the thermostat, or study in a coffee shop or library instead of at home.

It may seem silly, but getting used to focusing in different situations will help you eliminate one more hurdle on the road to passing the CMA exam.

We’ve outlined our best study tips to help you stay on track. 

Staying motivated is one of the most important parts of earning your CMA certification, so it’s important that you know which benefits you’re specifically looking for. This is the best way to keep your preparations in perspective and ensure your path to the CMA certification is a smooth one.

Passing the CMA exam takes a considerable investment, both financially and in opportunity costs, but the benefits of becoming a CMA are undeniable. Between the higher earning potential, upward mobility, increased job satisfaction, and recognition, there are plenty of reasons to become a Certified Management Accountant.